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I've been told that the root of my real life first name (Tyrel) is that of the Scandinavian god of battle (Tyr). You're into mythology, is that true??
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Yes, Tyr was a norse (viking) war God, who was the general of all the Aesir's (the Gods') armies. His most famous story is the one with Fenris the Wolf, a giant monster sired by Loki (the ambiguous trickster God) and a giantess. Fenris had a sibling called Jormungund, a giant snake that circled the world with his tail in his mouth. Anyway, Fenris was growing bigger and bigger and hungrier and hungrier, and the Gods were afraid of him, so they decided to tie him up.
They tied him up, but he broke the bonds, so they tied him up again with stronger chains, but he broke those too. In the end they had some magic chain made that wold be strong enough, but this time Fenris refused to be chained up. They said it was just a test of strength and that they would untie him if he couldn't break it, but he didn't trust them and still refused. In the end they only got him to agree to being chained up by saying that one of them would put their hand into his mouth as a symbol of faith. If he failed to break the chain and they refused to untie him he could bite off that hand. Tyr volunteered for the job and lost his hand, but Fenris stayed tied up until Ragnarok, the final battle, where all bonds are undone. Fenris was mutually killed by Odin in the final battle, IIRC. I'd have to check my sources about that, it could have been Thor.
Anyway, the story with Tyr and Fenris is probably where the Italians get the phrase "In bocca al lupo" (into the mouth of the wolf) meaning "Good luck".
Othaglot & Cane readers may feel a nagging recognition at the phrase "Bocca al lupo". Chapter 23. A stylised Jormungund appears as the symbol of my Viking shipset, and in the O&C story as a symbol of the Jormungund clan. Coincidence? I think not...
Read the O&C story here. It's just a few clicks away from the shipset, too.
EDIT: Now that I think about it, "In bocca al lupo" is probably more to do with the story of Romulus and Remus, the orphaned twins who were raised by wolves and subsequently went on to found the city of Rome. Oh well.